Denial, Deflection, and a Plea for Pardon

Sam Bankman-Fried, the once crypto wunderkind turned convicted fraudster, appears to have found a new investment thesis – hitching his legal fate to the political winds.

After years of playing the role of a prolific Democratic donor, the former FTX CEO is now parroting grievances against the Department of Justice, the judiciary, and the very system that held him accountable for one of the most spectacular financial implosions in recent history.

Despite being sentenced to 25 years in prison on March 28, 2024, speaking to the New York Sun, Bankman-Fried offered a novel legal defense – denial. “I don’t think anyone was guilty,” he said, in what might be his boldest (or most delusional) bet yet – that simply wishing away a verdict would somehow erase the billions in customer losses, the guilty pleas of his co-conspirators, and the rather inconvenient reality of a jury conviction.

But Bankman-Fried’s sudden affinity for Trumpian rhetoric is hardly coincidental. With his parents reportedly angling for a presidential pardon, the former billionaire appears to be taking a page from the playbook of Ryan Salame, his one-time lieutenant who similarly lamented political persecution before reporting for his seven-and-a-half-year sentence.

The pivot is as pragmatic as it is desperate – after all, it was only a few years ago that Bankman-Fried was showering Democratic campaigns with donations while presenting himself as the adult in the crypto casino.

Now, he’s looking toward a president who, after years of advocacy from his supporters, granted clemency to Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the Silk Road darknet marketplace, on January 21st.

It will be interesting to see whether Bankman-Fried can secure a similar favor from Trump, though, unlike Ulbricht, he may find himself without the same level of dedicated support rallying behind his cause.